Warhammer: Black Emperor

Chapter 901 The olive branch extended by Makado could not satisfy my appetite.
In the meeting room of the Vengeance Soul, Gavial Locken, the company commander of the 10th Company of the Shadowmoon Wolves, stood in the shadows behind Horus Lupecal.

He was curious about Ninglu, who was standing next to the father of genetics.

The forces deployed by "Shadow Moon Wolves" were twice that of "Shadow of Order," yet they were the first to cross the equator.

After returning to the warship, Locke conducted several simulations within the tactical network, but he still couldn't find out why the "Shadow of Order" was advancing so rapidly.

In his final simulation before his father convened the meeting, he used what Lord Dorne called the reverse simulation.

If you are unsure how to construct a fortress, you should change your approach and consider the defensive effect you need.

Loken believed that Lord Dorne's words also applied to war, especially when the situation was unclear.

After summarizing the information from the tactical briefing, he found some ideas:

The fact that "Shadow of Order" could advance to the heart of our battle lines suggests that communication links were guaranteed from the outset, but the Star Speakers are ill-suited to the brutal warfare of the Murder Star.

Is it really as Abaddon said, that the Shadow of Order are all wizards who use supernatural powers to ensure communication?
[The Emperor has issued the "Nicaea Ban," and even my father has ordered the think tanks to return to their respective units, yet Lord Nimrod dares to completely ignore it.]
The Shadow of Order has a clear objective: to take away every thorn tree it encounters.

But all they have to do is destroy it... They pulled up the thorn tree, which is strange... Lord Nimrod has a fondness for unusual plants and animals, and they want to offer the thorn tree to Lord Nimrod.

Although Lord Nimrod fought on treacherous battlefields, he was different from the silent hunters of the Caliban lion.

He was interested in many things, and it was said that the Shadow of Kings had many strange things presented to him by the legions and auxiliary forces.

Lord Ninglu always plays with it with great care, and it is said that he spends even more time on it than practicing swordsmanship.

However, he was also famous for his swordsmanship, and the rumors that Lord Ruth was completely outmatched in strength, agility and skill had already spread throughout the legions.

Lord Nimrod also broke through Lord Fenus Manus's Silver Hand defense.

Loken had asked Lord Dorne about the outcome of his duel with Lord Manus.

Lord Dorn did not answer, only saying that the Silver Hand was the most resilient defense in the physical world.

However, Silver Hand was defeated by Lord Ninglu.

[I wonder how Father fared in his battle with Lord Ninglu?]
As Loken pondered, he saw his father turn to look at Ninglu.

“Sanguielles has begun to reduce the role of think tanks in its operations.”

“You should do the same; this is what our father requires of us.”

Ninglu looked at Saint Gilles, whose white wings were folded, and nodded.

"I'm making progress, but it will take time."

[That's right, I only need two years for the "transition".]

Two years later, of course, it will be done openly and honestly.
Horus, seeing that Nimrod had accepted his advice, smiled and nodded. "Now, we should discuss how to deal with the uninvited guest."

“We should play different roles. I think you should be tough on them. The nobles of Terra still remember that night.”

"They called it the Bloody Night."

[Should I play the bad cop?]
Ninglu nodded. Compared to the holy archangels and the wise war generals, he, known as the Blood King by the nobles, was more suited to playing the villain.

"it is good."

Horus and Saint Gilles exchanged a glance, understanding each other's thoughts.

"Although the presence of the Thorn Tree prevented coordinated operations during this assassination of the star, the use of Nimrod's proposed full-scale airdrop tactic has repaired the rift."

As they pondered, a cold mist filled the air, and the cabin door slid open.

The delegation leader, Aeneid Rasborne, entered the reception room. The high-ranking official of the Terra Council had red hair and a pale, handsome face.

She was tall and slender, but her high-held neck made her cheekbones stand out even more.

"Respected War General, Lord Ninglu, Lord Saint Gilles."

After she bowed to the three Primarchs, her voice was as impassioned as a preacher's.

"Terra and the Forging World cannot carry this heavy burden forever."

"Now that we are the masters of millions of worlds, the empire must gradually begin to maintain its own operation."

“Many worlds have only recently submitted, and they have not yet recovered from the war. They cannot withstand the impact of levying taxes at present,” Saint Gilles said softly.

"The Emperor insists on this."

Ning Lu's eyes narrowed as he used a lawyer's perspective to spot the flaws in the words. "Does the Emperor insist on this?"

Rasborne's eyes widened as she gazed at the Blood King. Before coming, she had read Lord Nimrod's biography, "The Shadow King," and was well aware of his wisdom and insight.

"The emperor's seal holders emphasized to us that we must collect taxes and establish a sound mechanism to ensure that taxes are collected automatically and regularly."

She raised her voice, “The Terran Council has issued a decree that all expeditionary fleets, Primarchs, and all surrendered governors shall collect taxes from their respective planets to alleviate the Empire’s financial burden.”

Rasborne looked at Lord Nimrod, “The Sealholder emphasizes that this is not intended to impose a financial burden on the Primarch.”

"The Volstoria Sector once served as the engine of the Empire, contributing to the Great Expedition. In accordance with the agreement between the Marker and you, Terra will never tax it."

"The new district of Colony is still growing and will not be subject to taxation as an achievement of the great expeditionary civilization."

Horus frowned; Makado had chosen Nimrod as his point of attack.

He directly abandoned the taxation of Ninglu's two largest territories, and through his privileges, he won over Ninglu to the taxation camp.

Horus looked at Nimrod, to see what he would do.

Rasburn also looked at Nimrod; the olive branch extended by the Sealholder had brought Nimrod enormous benefits.

"The authority and status of the planetary governors will be lost once the taxation begins."

Ninglu spoke up, still expressing his opposition despite Rasborne's astonished gaze.

His ambition was stirring. "[Macado, the olive branch you've extended still can't satisfy my appetite.]"

The Vostoria Sector and the Colonid New District are far from enough; there's also the OSIRIS Sector, the Necromonda Sub-Sector...

Even the future Calicus sector, and the Rosicky sector, which will replace Orpheus in its name.
Nimrod wanted to pay nothing, and he would never allow the tax collectors to assess his territory, not even a single one.

[Nimrod actually refused... This is quite different from the biography of him...] Rasburn thought in bewilderment.

Horus's eyes gleamed; Nimrod was not swayed by petty gains in the face of matters of principle.

"The Terran Council is placing a heavy burden on the emerging world, which may overwhelm our barely maintained rule."

"Taxation is premature, too broad in scope, and extremely harsh."

"Many places around the world will rise up in rebellion."

The Warlord stared at Rasburn, calmly analyzing the situation.

"The peasants we conquered, upon hearing that they had a new master, would only shrug their shoulders."

"But if they hear that they have to hand over one-fifth of their income, they will definitely pick up a pitchfork."

"Everything we have fought for until now will be destroyed by war."

Nimrod listened to Horus's prophetic words and nodded silently.

Although the enormous resource consumption of the "Great Expedition" brought Terra to the brink of collapse, Horus was absolutely right; it was indeed too early.

Horus raised his arm and called upon many worlds to switch sides without hesitation.

From a future perspective, Macado made another wrong decision after Nichua's brilliant assist to Loga.
“But this is the will of the Sealholder and the Emperor, and you must obey it.” As Rasborne spoke, he raised the Imperial double-headed eagle scepter.

"This is a decision made by the Terra Council."

“We have established relevant rules and standards for calculating appropriate tax rates proportionally for each world.”

"I will cooperate with your work," Horus said after a few seconds of silence.

After Rasnian left, he rubbed the gold ring on his right little finger. "Ninlu was right, no one knows a son better than his father."

“My father would never approve of this behavior; it’s too early to say.”

"He was preoccupied with important matters, and the Terra Council bypassed him and acted on its own."

“We must take a smart approach… to ignore those tax collectors.”

Ninglu nodded. "You need to provide them with additional information about the specific circumstances of each world, so that they can dig out useful data from the vast sea of ​​documents."

Horus was surprised that Nimrod could guess his thoughts so quickly.

"That's right, this will give us a breather."

"I will complete the Great Expedition, and then return to Terra to talk to my father."

Nimrod nodded. Horus's idea was good. By delaying this period, the political landscape of the empire would undergo a major change after the grand birthday celebration, giving them a better chance to make taxation work in their own interests.

(End of this chapter)